Walls Between Us
by KPOPMetalChik
Summary: AU: Being the weak girl she was, Sakura has grown strong but is under the control of a man who's not willing to let her go. Until one day, Sakura is returned to her home where she was born and is left with no other option but to start her life all over again. When it comes down to protecting Sakura, just how far will Gaara go?
1. At First Glance

**OK! So I just had to start another fanfic of our popular pairing, GaaSaku! I did not want my ideas to just simply pass by and vanish xD**

**I am still working on the other one, the chapters are saved on my laptop but I still need to proofread them before I update the story!**

**Ok so in the beginning of this story, the event takes place a couple of days before the sand siblings appear!**

**Please let me know what you think, it's always greatly appreciated! Enjoy!**

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><p><strong>Chapter 1: <span>At First Glance<span>**

_"I don't want to live like this anymore!"_

_Throwing her arm back and clenching her fist tightly, she struck the long-haired man on his jaw making a trickle of blood flow down the corner of his lip and down his neck._

_"Just let me go! I am nearly a grown woman and I can leave wherever I want, when I want! You have no power over-"_

_"Don't you ever defy me, you ungrateful little slut!" The yellow-blonde sent a piercing shock of pain across the pink haired girl's face, sending her flying and hitting the wall of the room hard leaving a dent, "If you ever dare attempt to run away again, I will not hesitate to send your pretty lil' ass back out on the streets!" With that being said, the yellow-blonde stormed across her cramped room in the basement and shut the door behind him._

_Desperately, the pink haired girl ran towards the door in attempt to prevent him from locking her in but stopped dead in her tracks when she heard the sound of the door being locked from the outside along with the loud click of the master lock. She dropped to the floor, stream of tears flowing freely down her stinging bruised cheeks._

_"Please...I don't want to do this anymore...I can't live like this anymore!"_

_The poor girl had taken too many blows from the man who had still kept her under his roof...who had used her for his own money-making scams as a side job. Finally taking effect, a sharp pain shot through her head and she let herself fall to the cold wooden floor like a rag doll. She lied there for a while, remembering the shattered memories she had left of her parents, her home, her friends... She truly missed them all. The pink haired girl longed to go back home, to hear the shouts of her playful friends, to inhale the strong aroma of the many blossoming flowers in the garden of the main park. Deep down, she had hope to return...but if she remained where she was, she recognized she would never be able to return and have no future. Where she stood now in her life, she simply couldn't escape such a dilemma._

_The one memory she wished to bury away forever, was the sight of her fragile father laying in the hospital bed saying his last words to her but was simply cut off as the life from his eyes faded away followed by the continuous beep of the heart monitor, signaling he was gone from the living world. She had lost both parents to a serious case of pneumonia. The sight before her caused the entire world to crumble upon her. The two beings she cherished and loved with all her might, were dead. Only having a run down apartment as their shelter, the pink haired girl returned to their only home and cried herself to sleep every lonely night. Oh how she wished to just run into her mother's arms one more time and listen to her father's encouraging words. Only being 10 years old at the time, she didn't know what to do for the very first time despite the fact she was a complete genius. Everything happened too fast at the moment, it was too much for her to take at such a young age; especially at the stage where only crying was her only solution._

_The pink haired girl always wondered how did she ever get herself into this mess in the first place. At first, the man who found her crying in an ally in the middle of a violent thunderstorm had taken her into his mansion was very gentle, kind, and loving. She felt safe under his care. He had taken her miles and miles away from her hometown and was given her very own spacious bedroom and many luxuries she has never owned before. The only person who did not seem to accept her into the family, was 12 year-old Deidara. The little boy despised the pink haired girl and his jealousy grew each time his father grew warm towards Sakura, not paying as much attention to him. Now at the age of 22, Deidara had taken his father's place in his company after he had passed away some years after taking Sakura in. At the time, the yellow-blonde was only 16 and was considered too young to take over his father's company. His mother, however, had departed to another country after divorcing his father and remarrying another man of wealth and Deidara could only blame poor Sakura; accusing her of cursing his family with such tragedies. What struck Sakura more, was the hate Deidare had towards her. Not only had she "cursed" his family, but rejected his growing violent love for her during their teen years. Before his father died, Deidara had simply burned his father's will which clearly stated for his wealth to be split between his son and his daughter; yes he clearly stated Sakura as his daughter._

_Even if the kind man had taken her into his own home and referred to her as his daughter, Sakura could say she was completely happy before with her life back in Konoha despite the fact her family was living in poverty. Now that she was a woman at the age of 20, she longed to go out and face the world. Over the years she had grown incredibly strong, physically and mentally, and maintained such confidence even when Deidara would bring her down with his harsh words, beatings and blackmailing. Sakura knew she would be able to escape this. She had decided once she made a bit more cash, she would try to escape this hell hole and return to Konoha._

_Her thoughts were interrupted at the sound of the door becoming unlocked and a loud creak as the door swung open. As she felt strong arms lift her up from the ground, and then out the door. Sakura looked up in attempt to identify the face of the man who was carrying her out the door of the mansion and into the backseat of a car, but her vision had begun to slowly blur only then to be engulfed in darkness._

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><p>"Kankurou! I'm going to be late for the damn meeting again! Make sure the reports are in order and have them faxed directly to the-"<p>

"I know, I know sis! I got this, relax!"

Growling aloud, the dark blonde grabbed her work case and ran past the halls like a bullet. She knew that if she attended the meeting late yet again, she would surely get the scold of her life from her baby brother. Especially when she was in charge of holding the files for the conference. Just the thought, she knew she had no energy to put up with his verbal abuses and menacing remarks. Knowing all too well how their little brother, the chief executive officer, would get when one of them arrived either late or close to late on such crucial meetings, she began to run faster.

The dark blonde was never late to any event or conferences. All the work and reports just keep coming in continuously to the point where she struggled to keep the reports up to date and files in order. Not to mention, it always got this hectic before a special event coming up due to Suna's Alliance with Konoha's Cable Corporation. The day of their formed alliance was a day to remember and celebrate having made positive sales and put their ideas together to create more advanced technology and improve the material of their products. Taking a quick glance at her wrist watch, she let out a high-pitched gasp: she had exactly 5 minutes to make the meeting that was being held in the main building of Suna's Electronics & Automobile Corporation. She darted through the doors of the main building and headed for the stairs, not wanting to wait another second waiting for the dragging elevator. Step after step, the dark blonde panted heavily and treated herself to every known swear word she knew of for running in heels. Finally, she made it to the 10th flor of the main building and pushed herself to pick up the pace even further taking another quick glance at her watch: 1 minute. The fancy doors leading into the conference room came to view and once Temari was face to face with the double doors, she took a second to catch her grasp and fix her business clothes neatly. Taking in another deep breath, she opened the doors and entered the vast room. Many pairs of eyes fell upon her and there was a heavy silence. The one pair of eyes Temari was familiar of was piercing through her soul as if to mark her done for by the end of the meeting. Having grown used to his deadly glares, the dark blonde forced a casual smile and took her seat next her baby brother, Gaara.

It seems as if the the members had a headstart without Temari, one of the managers of the second building continued, "and so Explosion Corps Enterprises would like to make a deal with us in making that offer." The man was now done talking and took a seat, his eyes on Temari.

The dark blonde let out a thoughtful sigh and took over from there, "Alright let's get down to business, shall we?"

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It was past afternoon and the sun began to slowly sink, its last rays of light gently touching the city. The meeting felt as if it lasted for decades and the redhead was more than relieved it was over. Having completed all of his paper work and online duties, the red-head decided to call it a day and head for his apartment. Today, he must admit, had been a pretty busy day for everyone who worked in the company. During the meeting, Gaara had to fight the urge of simply pummeling one of his own assistant to a pulp when he made an idiotic suggestion about how to improve the sales of the allied companies. To think, who on earth hired such an airhead? Gaara closed his eyes in relaxation at the touch of the sun's last illuminant beams on his skin. It was warm, soothing, and calming...just like his mother's touch... He jumped slightly at the sound of his cell phone ringing abruptly. He let it ring, enraged at whoever the hell was calling and disturbing his peaceful moment. It continued to ring until Gaara answered the call with an annoyed growl in his tone, "What is it."

"Gaara, babe. I was wondering if I can come over today and possibly relieve some of that stress you have on your shoulders from today's meeting," the voluptuous woman purred on the other end of the line. The red-head rolled his eyes and sat back down on his seat, staring at the ceiling. The woman who has chased him constantly was Kira. Not only that, but the woman who would fulfill his sexual desires when he would come home. With just a click of his cell phone she would arrive his apartment already half-naked. No words would be exchanged. Simply undressing one another and not wasting a second in the bedroom. He was disgusted knowing the woman had no morals or self-respect for herself. But he was a man and at the sight of a curvaceous woman before him made his sexual desires tingle.

"Not today, I'm busy."

Kira groaned, "But Gaara-"

"Do I have to repeat myself twice, woman?" The redhead let out a huff and ended the call before the woman on the other line could protest any further. That shows the meaningless relationship the two had.

"Hey, Gaara. Kankurou and I will be waiting in the parking lot. Let's just say, we're treating you to dinner for a job well done today and saving my ass!" the dark blonde had slightly opened the door to Gaara's office and poked her head in.

Gaara snorted, rolling his eyes. He was not in the mood of dealing with his pushy siblings nor was he in any mood to go with them to go eat at some restaurant full of imbeciles.

"We will be waiting~~~" Before the redhead could protest, Temari gave him a thumbs up and closed his door.

The redhead sighed in annoyance as he cleared his desk and turned off his computer. Once having packed up, he did as he was told and found his siblings by his parked pearl black Lamborghini.

"Gaara! Temari and I decided to just take one car! Don't worry our assistants are in charge of driving our cars back to our place."

As if I cared what happens to your car, Gaara wanted to retort but fought the urge of doing so knowing his siblings worked as hard as anyone in the company did today. With a simple nod, the red-head got inside the driver's seat while Kankurou called shotgun. Temari rolled her eyes and sighed as she got in the backseat.

xxxxxxxxxxx

"Man, I'm stuffed!" The tattooed man said, patting his stomach lightly as the three siblings made their way back to the Lamborghini.

Temari turned to her brother, grinning, "That's a surprise. Usually you would complain that you have not had enough to eat."

Gaara chuckled at his sister's statement. He did not mind their presence. Actually, he enjoyed moments like these when they had a chance to gather and go places together. Temari being the oldest, always kept things in order. Especially at the company, when things got hectic she wouldn't let the situation worsen and would work hard to make sure everything was in order and in tact. His older sister had the primary role of the COO which is routinely one of operations management. Temari was responsible for ensuring that business operations are efficient and effective and that the proper management of resources, distribution of goods and services to customers and analysis of queue systems is conducted. Gaara appreciated her work and he knew he had done well in making her the corporate's chief operations officer. Kankurou, however, could sometimes lack a bit of hard work, but when it came down to business he was a nonstop machine continuously giving orders and making sure he managed the financial risks of the corporation. Kankurou was also responsible for financial planning and record-keeping, as well as financial reporting to higher management. Even thought his big brother could be a bit impulsive, Kankurou was a big-picture thinker. You could say, he liked to think outside the box and not be detail-oriented, outspoken and not reserved. He prefered to delegate and not be hands-on, emphasized what gets done and not how things are done, and made collaborative and not unilateral decisions which made him the chief financial officer of the corporation.

Where Gaara stood now, as much as he hated it, he couldn't complain-

"What the-?" Gaara's thoughts were interrupted when a flash of pink came at full speed and before he could move out of the way she crashed right on him, making the both of them fall to the pavement.

Completely outraged, Gaara growled under his breath and felt his temper rise at a dangerous level. He clenched both fists tightly, his knuckles whitenening. His eyes shot up to pierce through the imbecile who decided to run aimlessly with no sense of direction, but his anger lessened as his jade eyes met a frightened pair of beautiful glowing emerald eyes. Still a bit shaken up, Gaara shifted under the pink haired girl who had landed right on top of him and the bag she carried plopped to the side. They held each other's stare, struck by one another's eyes. Never in his life, did Gaara see such beauty and hope just by the look of one's eyes. And her hair; a bright roseatte that caught the street light's glow. The unknown girl moved slightly, making an attempt to get back on her feet. But her trembling body made her arms give out from sustaining her weight and she collapsed lightly on his chest.

"I-I'm sorry." The girl managed to choke out. Althought the girl was shaking, Gaara knew right away it wasn't of fear, but of the lack of energy she had left in her. His eyes slowly scanned the pink haired girl's arms up to her bruises were a multitude of hues, colors that normally should not be on someone's skin. There were garish purple splotches on both sides of her face, roughly the size of a fist, while others that were marked on her arms were more grayish, but still looked just as bad. And they were all over her. It was horrible. This girl...was badly mistreated. His heart clenched and his stomach churned in pure anger, wanting to know who had done this to her and why. The moment was broken until a man from some distance away was yelling.

"Come back here! You better pay for those you little wench!"

The pink haired girl snapped out of Gaara's trance. Her eyes widening, she gasped and abruptly got on her feet, snatched her bag from the floor and took off at full speed. But before she could disappear, Gaara turned to watch her run away. The man with the apron ran around the siblings, continuing his chase after the girl. Once Gaara stood up and dusted off his clothes, a bright red apple sat on the sidewalk where they had landed caught his eye.

"Oh dear, I hope that girl will be alright," Temari said, a sad tone in her voice.

Kankurou turned to his sister and coked his head slightly to one side, "Why do you say that, sis?"

Temari slightly frowned and sighed at her brother's slowness at times, "the poor girl stole the apples out of starvation. Judging from the clothes she was wearing, she's probably homeless," Temari kneeled down to pick the apple up and snorted out loud incredulously after examining it, "2.98 for just one apple? Just what was that man thinking when putting the prices on his products!"

Gaara grimaced at his sister's explanation. Could the girl really be homeless? Or was she just one of those tramps who would disguise themselves as a homeless person just to get easy money? He did not know and he knew it would stay a mystery realizing that was the first and last time he would ever stare into those beautiful glistening emerald eyes again.

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><p>"Phew! That was close." Sakura leaned against the wall in an ally and slid down against it. She happily took out the apple from her pocket and took a big bite, the sweet taste of the succulent, delicious apple tasted almost like heaven and the juice felt so fresh in the pink haired girl's mouth. It has been a couple of days since one of Deidara's "aquaitances," as he referred them to, had brought her back to her home-town.<p>

For the past two days, Sakura tried to remember where her friends lived. The chances of her childhood friends living in the same house as she remembered were very slim, she knew very well that most of them probably did not reside in the same house anymore and could have moved to to another location in the city. But the question was where. Taking another happy bite, Sakura couldn't help but feel ashamed for stealing the apples. Never in her life, had her parents raised her to be this way. Even if they couldn't afford groceries to make dinner, Sakura grew up in a family of pride and strength and self respect. But in situations like these, Sakura had no other choice but to snatch the two apples from the cart and run off. She was starving! The one apple would just do to restore her energy and to give her more strength. Once eating the apple leaving only the core of it, she disposed the remains of the fruit in a near by trash can and excitedly reached in her other pocket to grab the other one. A look of distraught fell upon her face. It didn't take her long to realize she must have dropped it when she bumped into the tall man with the red hair. The red-headed man who had the most strangest yet most beautiful eyes she has even seen in her life. At first, his eyes were steely and cold trying to make her coward under his trance but in a flash his jade eyes had turned soft, gentle, soulful. Despite the lack of his expression on his face, his jade eyes glowed of emotions. Sadly, the pink haired girl knew that was the first and last time she'd ever get to look into those majestic glowing eyes ever again.

Shaking the image of the red-headed man from her head, she stood up and stretched. Sakura made her way to a nearby stairway and sat down. She had no idea what to do next. She swung her bag from her shoulder and rummaged through the things Itachi had packed for her: all of her identification cards, some clothes and a pair of shoes. Her eyebrows raised in curiosity, having discovered a hidden zipper inside on the bottom of the bag. As she unzipped the hidden pocket, her eyes widened in shock: 2 fat wads of cash was left behind...or placed inside. Sakura felt her heart leap in joy and in relief. This would definitely be enough for her to eat for a good 4 months. She quietly thanked Itachi and the heavens above. If it weren't for him, she wouldn't feel free again. After being knocked out by Deidara, Itachi had come to her aid. She figured the man could not handle the way Deidara was treating her and decided to take her out of her misery from the mansion. Once they had arrived, Itachi had given her the bag and before he sped off he said "He will send his men out to bring you back. Do not let him find you." And with that being said, he had driven off. Sakura did not know why he would pull off such a heroic gesture like that, putting his own life and career on the line. The only plausible answer she could come up with was that he could have felt pity towards her, always seeing her in the house miserable and constantly be pushed around by Deidara.

She could somewhat recall the day she had been one of his victims. After contemplating her in utter shame, pity, and anger Itachi simply put the money in her hands and told her to take it; that she did not need to fulfill such grotesque services to win money for herself and for Deidara's side business. Sakura was simply shocked. Nothing else was said and he had walked out of the room. Though, the pink haired girl believed Itachi was unaware of her so-called job. They were scams. Sakura felt horrible, but it was her only option for survival and for the sake of gaining respect from Deidara.

Tch! Survival!? Sakura felt disgusted of herself. Never in the world, would she ever dedicate her time to committing such violent acts. What would her parents think of her? What would her friends say if they ever knew of this? Sure Deidara blackmailed her into being a part of his side business, but she knew she could of fought her way through. But then again, when she stood up for herself the pink haired girl would get the beating of her life. But being the strong woman she had grown to, she did not back down from a fight against Deidara even though in the end he would gravely berate her, claiming how ungrateful she was or how she had brought a curse unto his family, and making it crystal clear how he could send her out on the streets empty handed in the split of a second. There were a couple of times where Sakura had a lover and that lover wanted Sakura to move in with him, but Deidara would immidiately threaten the man's life, and terrorize him away. Never seeing any of them or hearing from them ever again. There was simply no way of escaping Deidara's grasp.

A heavy sigh escaped her lips as she made her way out of the ally. All of that was in the past and will stay in the past. Sakura now held her head high, in hopes that she will build a new life back in her hometown, where she was taken away only to be met by a constant nightmare. She knew she would be starting from scratch, but it sure was hell of a lot better than living under the control of Deidara.

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><p><strong>So what do ya think? hmm? :D Next chapter to be put up as soon as possible!<strong>


	2. Under One's Nose

**Sorry for the long wait! The semester barely started and I already have a 10-page research paper due this wednesday for my english class. **

***shakes fist at professor for cursing her with such work* ****I tried to update sooner but school had me by the neck once again. I'm sure it does **

**for everyone! But yeah...this is the longest chapter I have written by far I hope you all don't mind. Again I apologize for the wait, dear **

**readers. Anyways here is the ****second chapter and I hope you enjoy!**

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><p>"Last one to the pool buys lunch!"<p>

"That's not fair, bushy brow! Get back here!" The blonde yelled out, he didn't waste a second longer to catch up to the tall and slim Rock Lee. He knew all too well he did not carry enough cash on him to treat his friends to a feast.

"Dammit, you guys! If we get kicked out one more time-"

"Oh, stop being such a grouch Ino! Come on!" Tenten chided in as she grabbed Ino's arm and had her sprinting seconds later to catch up to the boys followed by a silver eyed girl right behind them. Once they had passed the two, the three girls made their way to entrance into the pool and turned to face the boys with a grin on their faces while the silver eyed girl smiled shyly at the struggling blonde next to Lee.

The weekend had arrived and the group had decided to call it a hang out day. Unfortunately, Shikamaru had to stay home with his nose in his criminology books all day due to an upcoming exam. Because of his lack of work, Shikamaru decided it was best to stay in and catch up on his missing assignments as much as he hated to admit. On the other hand, Chouji had left the state for a boxing tournament he had worked extremely hard for, especially since he needed to get fit again from all the chips he had eaten the previous week. Shino had decided to stay and practice on his Jiu Jitsu back at the dojo along with other members of the academy such as Neji who trained aikido nonstop. Besides that, the weather was fantastic and the group decided to go for a swim to cool off from the summer heat. The laughter of playing children and mixed conversations of grownups filled the air along with the strong odor of the pool.

"I shall not lose to you Naruto!" Lee exclaimed dramatically as he jumped into the air to meet the finish line. The girls only watched, shaking their heads.

The blonde leaped forward a split second later, reaching out to touch the finish line. To their dismay, they had both made it at the same time but the two refused to admit defeat; but there could be only one winner.

"While you guys argue all day about your lame race to the pool, we are going inside to get changed," Tenten said bluntly but knew that the boys were too busy arguing over who was the loser and had to buy lunch later in the day.

The three girls went inside and were greeted by the humidity of the changing room. The girls had each received a key to a locker and made their ways to their given number.

"Hey Ino, will Kenji be helping us prepare the special order this week?" Tenten asked, her attention on the lock.

The light-blonde and her mother owned a bakery and it was one of the top bakeries in the city. Not to mention, her mother also owned a Catering and Banquet store down town. Just a couple of weeks ago, they were called for a special order for Suna's Electronics' big event they were holding for some kind of business accomplishments and some sort of celebration. Ino sighed and remembered the new baker she had hired a couple of weeks ago. The poor guy was indeed a bit clumsy and would sweat relentlessly when business was picking up and constantly receiving orders. Despite his whacky appearance and uncoordinated act, he carried a special talent when it came to baking. The man would make such delicious sweets that would tatse like tiny drops of heaven. She grunted in response as to say yes to Tenten's question. Tenten and Hinata were also a part of team back at Yamanaka's Bliss Cake Boutique and Ino recognized the two as one of her best bakers at the shop and one of the top bakers in the city.

"Yes, yes he is. But please, cut the poor guy some slack, girl! He obviously feels intimidated by your fierce look when it comes to beating the dough," the light blonde stated, receiving a chuckle from her friend in return.

"U-um...we will be working on the order tomorrow morning, correct?" asked the silver-eyed girl shyly from the opposite side of the room.

Ino nodded in response to Hinata's question, "Yes. Kiba promised to lend us a hand with the delivery of the sweets on the day of the event since we are in short of delivery men at the moment. I was informed by my mom that we are going to attend the event for some time to help serve the special guests there. It's the biggest order we've ever received!"

"So we have to go to the place to pass out the food? Meaning we have to spend the day _t__here? _I was hoping to go back to the dojo to catch up on my training with Neji. But now we have to be waitresses for a bunch of rich snobs for the day," spat Tenten as she slammed the locker shut and securing it with her lock.

"I really need your cooperation, you guys. I know our Catering and Banquet shop is in charge of that but we need the extra help we can get. There will be a lot of people attending the celebration, so yes we will be like waitresses for the day and my mom promised to pay you two extra. I know it's not your obligation or duty to do so, but if you accept we are giving the both of you a raise for this month's paycheck" explained Ino following Tenten down to the exit of the locker room, passing the shower stalls.

Hinata turned from her locker and quickly followed behind. Suddenly, the silver-eyed girl carelessly slipped on the wet floor of the shower room and collided onto a girl who had just finished changing in a stall. In complete embarrassment, Hinata slowly looked up to apologize for not thinking right and stopped abruptly when her gaze met a pair of bright emerald eyes. It suddenly struck her: this girl was definitely familiar and she has definitely seen her before. The emerald green eyes, pale milky skin, the pink hair: this girl...seemed definitely familiar. No other words came out of Hinata's parted lips and the roseate could only cock her head to the side in utter confusion at the silver-eyed girl who continued to only stare at her wide-eyed. The pink-haired stranger accepted Hinata's apology followed with an assuring smile,

"Don't worry about it, just becareful with these wet floors," and she then made her way out of the shower room.

Shutting her eyes closed, she gently touched her forehead with the tip of her fingers trying to recollect all memories from the back of her head of the unknown pink-haired girl. Hinata straightened herself up as she came back to her senses. She grunted in irritation and before she knew it, her eyes flew wide open and the name of the person they have not seen in a long time was on the tip of her tongue.

"Sakura!"

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><p>"Hey Naruto, I just got a call from Neji saying that Kakashi-sensei is running in late <em>again. <em>Unfortunately, he won't be able to make it to the dojo on time and was wondering if you could cover today's aikido session. Ah! And Gaara is at the dojo as well! So that means he's ready to pour all his stress out to a good fight! You know how he likes to provoke arguments with the others and verbally abuse them; we wouldn't want him scaring our students away, now do we?"

Naruto groaned in exasperation. Just when he was about to dive right into the pool to refresh his overheated body, he gets called to work on his day off. Sometimes he wondered where on earth his sensei would wander off to for him to not make it to the dojo. This would be the seventh time this month he would be called in to cover for Kakashi. Not that he minded, but lately he hasn't had time to really catch up with his childhoold friends. Especially Gaara since he was constantly busy with his company. The last time he's seen his red-headed friend was in the beginning of the month when they had agreed to go get a few drinks at a bar where they had been accompanied by a couple of girls who were curious about the two. Recently Gaara had stopped by at the dojo for a quick watch during their training hours, he seemed very absorbed while doing so. The red-head had joined them several times during their training and Naruto must admit, the red-head had some deadly strength buried deep within him. When the blonde had offered to spar with the red-head, he was somewhat aware that Gaara knew how to fight judging by his stance and his intense eyes scanning his every move. It is to be said that if Gaara's anger reached a dangerous level, the deadly strength he carried would show itself to whoever the opponent was and would immediately take the other combatant down.

"Fine fine fine. I won't question it," the blonde finally agreed.

"If you would like, I will go with you as well. I would like to improve on my wing chun skills while you go on and teach the aikido lesson to the beginners. Besides, maybe it will be more smart if we stay in late to practice for that upcoming tournament," the handsome devil offered.

The blonde nodded in agreement and quickly made their way back to the boy's locker rooms. Before they left the community pool, Lee had told Ino that duty called and they must leave at once. The girls, bummed out, understood and said their goodbyes to Lee and Naruto. Naruto could swear he saw Hinata mope right after they had turned to continue their way into the pool. As they exited the changing room, Naruto came to a halt when he felt a familiar presence near by.

Lee turned and looked questioningly at his friend, "What is it, Naruto?"

Naruto spun around and scanned the area around them as if sensing the familiar presence was certainly close by, "Oh...it's nothing. I felt as if...it's nothing forget about it." The blonde turned to face Lee and continue to walk beside him. He did not know what that feeling was, but he sensed that there was something missing that is to be found. He patted his jean pockets to reassure he had not left anything behind and began to look through his bag to check everything was in there. Then came the conclusion that he was feeling jittery for having to turn down their friends at the very last-minute, but when it came to his job that he so loved, he knew he could not object. What he loved most about his job as a master of the martial arts, it was the perfect blend of the mental and the physical. It teaches self-control and discipline as much as self-defense. Though, Naruto preferred Aikido over other forms because he believed it contains the most effective elements of many arts.

Once they had arrived, the two quickly changed into their gi uniform and made their way back unto the training grounds of the dojo. A crimson red caught Naruto's eye and he saw his friend seated in one of the far end corners of the dojo and before he could start class, he jogged towards Gaara who was leaning against the wall.

"Hey Gaara! Ready for a good beating today?" Naruto affirmed with a grin.

"Funny, I was about to ask you the very same question," stated the red-head nonchalantly.

"I'll take that as a yes! Let me finish today's lesson and then we can spar. I have all day and besides, it'll serve me well as training!" With that being said, the red-head could only chuckle at the blonde's remark as Naruto made his way back to the center of the dojo. Naruto turned to his students and waited for their formal bow. As his students gave out a good defense stance afterwards, Naruto barked out orders: today was going to be a long day.

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"I told you I wouldn't go easy on you this time, Gaara!" The blonde jumped over Gaara and quickly positioned himself to the floor, swinging his leg towards Gaara feeling the impact of bone on bone.

The red-head growled a curse and so moved even faster Naruto has even seen him do. Naruto swung his foot around, aiming to nail Gaara right in the stomach but the red-head quickly analyzed his tactics and was able to block the oncoming attacks of the blonde. Gaara's defense was extremely rock solid, no doubt. The fact that the infamous red-head was hot-tempered, definitely showed through the impact of his punches and kicks. Even with obtaining such strength, Gaara showed no sign of worry nor exhaustion. He simply kept a stern yet powerful look the entire time they were sparring.

But even through his sturdy defenses, Naruto managed a quick but powerful palm strike to the red-head's chest. In return he received a low feral growl from his friend and he changed to offense. The red-head and the blonde danced in swift movements around the training ground. Again, the blonde managed to break through Gaara's defense once more. In doing so, it only fueled his anger and Naruto couldn't help but smirk challengingly to the red-head. He was definitely a combatant worth sparring with.

"Allow me to take over from here!" The Leaf's Green beast swiftly jumped into action and began throwing kicks towards Gaara.

"Don't mind if I join!" Neji declared in a somewhat cocky way. The silver-eyed man continuously inflicted palm strikes at Naruto who could only struggle to keep his defense mechanism up. He definitely had more training to do.

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><p>"Aaah! This feels amazing!" The pink haired girl exclaimed as the irresistable warm water rained onto her skin making her skin so clear and smooth. When the first drop hit her skin, all her worries were soon washed away. The warm droplets formed steam as she stood there without moving at all, the voices of the pool's shower room banging in her head. From the excited shouts of little girls to the gossiping adults echoing the shower room but was later drowned in the sound of the water running. Sakura's skin was burning from the mellow droplets morphing into sharp little blades of fire. The pink haired girl had snuck into the community pool's shower room for a hot shower she's been longing to take. As she turned the faucet off, she felt the last trickle of the warm liquid splash her head and was soon welcomed by the humidity of the room.<p>

The pink-haired girl knew she had to get a move on if she wanted to put a stop to her never-ending growling stomach. She briskly dried off and threw on the clothes Itachi had packed up for her; a pair of jean shorts and a blue tank top. Letting out a heavy sigh, she leaned against the door of the stall. If what Itachi said was true about Deidara sending out his men to bring her back, then she would definitely have to be on the lookout and hide somewhere. This only made things more complicated than it was. Aside from the fact of being homeless and the possibility of running out of money sooner than she would have thought, Sakura was more concerned about who to hide from. She'd have to be aware of her surroundings 24/7 if Deidara would request such an order...but he was capable of doing so.

Not only was he one of the richest and powerful men in Iwagakure City, but he was also one of the deadliest and definitely fucked up in the head. Even if he was a bit mentally bruised, Sakura knew all too well that the man was indeed smart and clever. Of course he would want her back; to have control over her and push her around for being the nuisance she was during her earlier years in the family. He _needed_ Haruno Sakura for his dirty scams. Not to mention, he would involve Sakura into an underground women's boxing tournaments in an abandoned warehouse where heavy mafia men would place their bets on the expected winner. Having grown into a strong women, Sakura would always win the match. As much as she despised doing so, she needed the money and she needed to leak some of her frustration and depression out through fighting. Besides, it's not like if she had a choice judging that Deidara made sure she would do whatever he said and that she would not get to reach her goals in becoming a medic.

The man was a complete bomb addict and crazed lunatic who held a strong grudge against Sakura. But not just anyone could tell he was, from afar he seemed like a normal handsome guy like any other who was all about business. Deidara usually showed a cool, and relaxed attitude, never losing his smirk even while failing to accomplish something in his father's company or when being blamed by his partner (his cousin) for his careless decisions that somehow turned to be a bright one later on. He seemed like a the type of guy anyone would like to be friends with. Deidara was also known for his intelligence, often using tricks, misdirection, and calculated gambles during his side businesses. But on the inside, oh was he leaking of evil just like his cousin. The cousin whom Sakura could not remember his name since she had only met him a couple of time during their dinner parties back when her stepfather was up and alive. But she knew all too well despite his gorgeous and careless appearance, he also permeated with negativity.

Flash backs...memories began to flood back into Sakura's head. When she was still a kid, the pink-haired girl would do all sorts of nice things to gain Deidara's trust and his brotherhood. She longed for his care being the older step brother he was but even when she would come home from school, the yellow-blonde would shoot her one of his deadliest glares and immediately go into his room once she walked through the doors of the Minamoto Mansion. But then Daichi, her savior, would always show up a few minutes later welcoming her in open arms. The mother, Risuka, took a while to stop rejecting the homeless little girl. But more importantly, it was Daichi who grew extremely close with Sakura and treated her as if she was one of his own children and this was what Deidara hated so much. Always wanting his father's acceptance and become exactly like his father, Deidara had no choice but to abandon his passion: sculpturing. The yellow-blonde was praised highly for his clay sculptures and Deidara's desire to reach even greater heights in his art resulted with him defying his father, rejecting to become the next heir to own his father's company; one of the top companies in Iwagakure. But seeing that the pink-haired brat was blinding his father, sugar coating him with her sweet giggles and warm smiles, Deidara knew he had to abandon his true passion to please his father, to gain his love that was withering away each passing day Sakura remained in the house. He also feared that his father would be capable of putting Sakura as the heir of the company instead and there was no way he would let Sakura get all the glory.

The pink haired-girl quivered at the dark memories during her stay at the mansion in Iwagakure and shook her head, whishing to get rid of such harsh memories. Sakura grabbed her bag which was hanging on the door of the stall and as she made her way out, she heard an eep followed by a painful feeling creeping up herside as someone rammed right into her.

"I-I'm sorry...I slipped and-" a raven-haired girl with silver wide eyes slowly made their way to come in contact with Sakura's green orbs. Luckily they hadn't hit the wet floor which would have brought more painful throbs to their bodies.

Sakura could only chuckle nervously as the apologetic raven-haired girl stared at her in awe. She shifted uncomfortably, was it her forehead? _I swear if that's the case...I would be better off living under a rock!_ Her eyes fell upon the stranger once again and something triggered in her brain: she knew this girl, but from where? In those few minutes, she made an attempt to dig for any memories about this girl from the back of her head. But it was no use, she probably looked like someone she knew so she shook off the unknown feeling of remembrance.

"Don't worry about it, just be careful with these wet floors," with a warm smile, she stepped around the silver-eyed girl and walked towards the exit of the locker room.

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><p>Once Hinata had reached the exit of the locker room, Sakura was gone; no where in sight. Without wasting anymore time Hinata ran back inside and to the floor area of the pool. It was Sakura: their child-hood friend who disappeared without a trace long ago. Hinata could only scold at herself for not having remembered her there right on the spot. Now, Sakura could be anywhere in the city! But luckily, the city wasn't as vast so there was a slight chance that if they go out to look for her, they will find her. Her eyes quickly scanned the area full of people for her two friends. Adults were walking around while running children were scattered over the perimeter of the pool. Hinata grimaced as a group of kids began running around on the wet floor and a couple had slipped, landing on their knees. The lifeguards ordered the children to stop running and one of the lifeguards made his way to aid the crying kid with the scraped knee. The little boy's cries and the noise of the people mingled in the air. Once her eyes caught a glimpse of a light blonde she <em>carefully<em> but quickly made her way towards Ino and Tenten.

"Ino, Tenten! I saw Sakura!"

Ino, who was tanning on a long chair next to Tenten, shot up from her seat at the sound of her childhood friend being mentioned, "You saw who!?"

"I saw Sakura! I bumped into her in the shower room and it took me a while to recognize her but by the time I ran after her, she was gone," explained the silver-eyed girl timidly.

Tenten sat up from her seat and removed her sunglasses, "and she didn't recognize you?"

Hinata shook her head in response, "I don't think she remembers me. I was always so scared to go up to her personally since she was hot-tempered. I rarely conversed with her even though she would always draw with me during art class."

"Describe her," ordered the brunette firmly, placing her hand under her chin in deep thought.

"She had bright pink hair and green eyes," answered Hinata without hesitation.

Now it was Tenten's turn to look surprised; her eyes widened and her jaw dropped in utter astonishment. No other person in the world fit that description and there was no doubt that the person Hinata had just described was definitely their long-lost friend, Haruno Sakura. Tenten turned to face a shocked Ino.

Ino's heart began to pound against her chest, her pulse increasing. It's been so long since she's seen her best friend: Sakura. Exactly 10 years ago, was when Sakura vanished out of the blue and Naruto was the first to suggest they gather up after school to search for their friend when Sakura had not shown up for school for a week. Worried, the group of friends searched the city relentlessly with the help of their parents. Naruto, who was under the care of Iruka, had asked his guardian to print missing posters and have them posted on every wall of the city possible. Ino was aware that Sakura's parents had passed away and the possibility of her running away was in the air, but she knew with all her heart that Sakura would have mentioned doing so to her friends. Not even any notification from her, not once, they finally accepted that their pink-haired friend was long gone from the city after 4 years had gone by. There was still hope she could maybe one day return but they did not know when that day would come, and this day could be the day they all waited for the return of their long-lost friend. Ino hurriedly grabbed her cellphone from a stand beside her and dialed Naruto's number. Ino groaned in annoyance as she dialed Naruto's number for the sixth time. Tenten tried reaching Lee and Neji, but there was no luck in doing so. Ino only hoped the blonde would answer so that once more history would repeat again; only this time, they will find their friend.

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><p>Gaara wiped the trickle of sweat that reached his forehead with the back of his hand as he made his way back into the changing room. He grabbed his bottled water and gulped it down in one drink and resumed to changing out of his work out clothes. It had been a long yet productive day for the red-head. He felt satisfied and relieved that he got to take some of his stress out on a good match with Naruto, Lee and Neji. He wished he got to match with Shino, but the mysterious guy had to leave early due to some personal issues. He was aware that Shino had mastered Sidokan Aikido and Jiu Jitsu and is one of the best fighters there who would compete in the upcoming tournament. Even knowing so, the red-head wanted to his bloomed skills with Shino. Gaara himself was once a black belt in Aikido, Muay Thai and in Wing Chun. But because his father had left the company of their family in his hands, the red-head had no other choice but to step up to take the throne and take over from where his father had left off. If it weren't for that, Gaara knew he would have devoted his time in being a part of the dojo. In all honesty, he hated his job but could not complain any further knowing it brought a lot of money and Gaara knew it was the best job he's ever had than in the past.<p>

Since the death of his father, which brought relief among the siblings, Gaara was able to grow closer to his siblings who once did everything in their power to avoid their baby brother. Never having known his mother who died after giving birth to Gaara, the red-head was shunned by his father and looked down upon by others around him. All except for his uncle, Yashamaru, who was the only person who showed that he cared and loved for Gaara in his younger years. Some time later, his uncle had a serious mental breakdown and attempted to kill Gaara, carving a kanji sign on the left upper side of his forehead. The scar had remained there ever since then. It was the scar that constantly reminded Gaara of his uncle's betrayal and of the loneliness he had which was the worst kind of pain. The red-head was still stubborn and cold towards other people, and would constantly verbally abuse anyone who dare say the wrong words to him but he knew deep down he had changed for the best. Unlike the monster he was in the past. He was no longer the rebellious and mentally hurt kid he was before, always wanting to wreak havoc among those around and anyone who dare messed with him. He was no longer the emotionally disturbed being who would shiver with excitement when the blood of his opponents during a fist fight would splat on his skin. He felt a cold shiver shoot down his spine which made him push such traumatic and life-scarring memories aside.

"Hey, Gaara! How are ya holdin' up?" asked the blonde from the other side of the changing room.

"Pretty good, I should be asking you that since I gave you a hard time to break through my defenses," stated the red-head mockingly.

"Hah! Are ya sure about that? Looks like it was the other way around!" Huffed the blonde jokingly at Gaara.

"Sure, whatever makes you feel better. I must apologize for not giving it my all today. I'm saving that for a much later fight."

The blonde could only laugh at his response and continued to change, "Hey wanna go for a few drinks after this? I heard that the vodka was on the house tonight!"

Gaara sighed and shook his head, the last time they went out drinking not only did they attract a bunch of odd women but Naruto had consumed too much alcohol to the point where he passed out in the middle of a fight that broke out in the bar.

"Yes but I suggest you stay away from the strong liquor. It seems you can't control it," stated Gaara. After what seemed like an ongoing debate about who could take in the most liquor, Gaara was already done packing up his dirty clothes and changing into some clean ones; he couldn't wait to go home and take a long shower. He felt his phone vibrate in his pocket for the fifth time. As he unlocked his touchscreen, his eyes only squinted at the screen that read:

_6__ new messages from Kira, Matsuri, Temari__ ...two new voice mails from Kira. _

Gaara rolled his eyes and sighed heavily at sight of Kira's name showing up on his phone screen. The red-head would be expecting the seductive, money-chasing woman in his bedroom tonight..._again._ The other times they shared their intimate appointments in his bedroom and in his office, the red-head could not deny he would reject to what he saw before him. But today he was just not up to it, he wanted the rest of the day to himself, especially since he had to make a few phone calls to make sure everything about the imminent event is under control and in order. He knew he had to stay in his office the next day until midday to work on a few reports he had left undone the previous morning. The red-head could care less about what kind of food and decorations would be brought to the celebration of the company's alliance, he just wanted to get it over with and move on to his everyday life as the head executive of his company. He would have to phone his secretary, Matsuri, later to be in charge of that since he wouldn't be able to with a curvaceous woman on his bed tonight.

Gaara's thoughts were soon shattered at the sound of a phone ringing and a loud Naruto answering the phone that suddenly filled the room. Gaara could hear whoever it was on the other end of the line from where he stood, the person must be angry at his friend for whatever reason.

"I'm sorry! I was busy training, what do- _WHAT_!? Sakura is back!?" the blonde exclaimed with a shock tone in his voice.

Sakura? Who's Sakura? Gaara hated to eavesdrop and felt like a prick, but couldn't help but wonder why was the person Naruto was conversing with sounded frantic and Naruto being shaken by the sudden call. It seemed as if this Sakura meant a lot to Naruto for him to be shaken up by whatever news he was receiving at the moment. She was probably an important acquaintance of Naruto.

The blonde shoved his belongings back in his locker and quickly made his way out of the changing room. Gaara followed behind shortly after and suddenly saw a shocked Lee and Neji standing before Naruto, who was delivering whatever news was given to him.

"Gaara!" Naruto spun around abruptly to meet the red-head's stare, "we're gonna have to call off the drinks off and hold it for another day. I'm sorry, but I just received an important call concerning Sakura."

Gaara creased his brows, small and faint wrinkles forming on his forehead, "Sakura? You are talking as if you have spoken to me about her before."

"I _did _talk about her to you before, man! The girl I told you about that vanished from the face of the earth and we never heard from her again? She is my best friend since we were kids and Ino told me they had spotted her around the area earlier today. She means a lot to me, Gaara. You think you can give us a ride to Ino's place? We are going to begin a search party for her," the blonde was out of breath after explaining to Gaara the occurence under a minute.

The red-head sighed an nodded in agreement as he placed a hand on Naruto's shoulder: he knew he'd do anything for his friend, "I have nothing else to do for the rest of the day so I will help you search for your friend." He couldn't let him down. If this meant a lot to Naruto then Gaara would do anything he can to lend a hand to him. Gaara lead the way to his vehicle with Naruto, Lee and Neji following behind discussing about where to begin looking first. The red-head sometimes wondered if they were always this dramatic. Did they actually think they were going to find a certain individual who could be anywhere in the city by the next day? Gaara believed they were somewhat overreacting but this is what it meant to have friends that actually cared about one another and by knowing that made Gaara smile to himself. The red-head had a growing curiosity about this Sakura and couldn't wait to meet the person that disappeared from their lives long ago...the person whom when mentioned by Naruto, he would hold a sad look in his eyes as he talked about her.

_Hmph...Sakura huh?_ The name of the girl lingered in the air as they drove off to their destination.

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><p><strong>On your way out please review! Hope you all enjoyed this chapter and am already working on the next one :D<strong>

**Again, I hope you enjoyed the chapter and thank you for your time in reading my stories (it has somewhat of a long way to go).**

**Over and out! \m/**


	3. The String of Fate

**I am back dear readers!**

**I am SO SO SORRY for the long wait. I do not mean for these excuses but you know...school and crap and extra activities. Not to mention, music and family members staying over. AH! So much research papers for english 102, it's ridiculous! Well you know!**

**Anyways, I hope you enjoy this chapter. I am trying not to rush Gaara and Sakura's fluff moments here, I don't want the love part to be rushed ^^ I hope you all don't mind that.**

**Well, here it is!**

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><p>Chapter 3: The String of Fate<p>

"Wow! I almost forgot how beautiful Konoha's river view was! Aah...this almost reminds me of the view back at the mansion!" Sakura exclaimed cheerily as she deeply inhaled the strong aroma of nature surrounding her. Knowing what she had just said, her joyful expression had faded and looked at the flowing river. Sakura wondered if she would ever be able to rebuild her life from scratch again as she did before. After being many miles away, she truly missed her home town. Since her departure from Konoha, she's realized the many changes that were made to the city. It seems as if the city was expanding a bit more, not to mention to the advancement of the use of technology and more fancy-like edifices were built in the city.

The sun was peaking from the mountains from afar, illuminating the city with such warmth and glow. Feeling the gentle heat of the yellow sphere reach her skin made her shut her eyes contentedly, wishing she had someone who could love her, comfort her, protect her. Not that she couldn't defend herself, but she wanted to have a protector to keep her under his wing. It certainly would not be Deidara. He was the last person on earth she would consider as a love interest. The man was a complete lunatic, he did not know what he want. One day he would simply devalue Sakura, then the other day he would try to relax with her. One thing for sure, was that she was sick of his beatings when he would lash out on her and she would do anything to never be found by him ever again. The pink haired girl knew she had to stay strong and there was no way she could give up now that she is back in her hometown.

**-Flashback-**

_Sakura was returning from another day at school, when she saw a familiar figure with bright-red blood hair look down upon her from the front balcony of the house. She slightly grimaced, knowing very well who it was and she quickly entered the house without glancing at the person once more. Once she shut the door behind her, she made her way to her bedroom only to run into a shirtless Deidara exiting the bathroom that was located a few doors down from her room. He walked by, not acknowledging her presence and made his way to his room. Sakura looked back and sighed sadly, there was just no way getting on Deidara's good side. As she turned away, the pink haired girl stopped as she felt a pair of eyes burn into her back. Once she entered her room, she shut the door behind her and Sakura could swear she felt his eyes burn through the door as well. A few hours later Sakura made her way to relax by the river near the mansion. In the clearing, she made out a familiar figure who beat her to the spot first: it was Deidara._

_He turned to look at her showing no sign of acknowledgement, "Tch...why are you here?"_

_"Oh, I was hoping to relax here a bit and take in some fresh air. Do you mind?"_

_Deidara looked away from her, "I don't care."_

_Sakura stepped beside him, only to have him turn away and make his way back to the mansion._

_"All I want is your acceptance, Deidara. Why do you hate me so much? I know father would want us to-"_

_"Father!? FATHER!? Hahaha! You've got to be fucking stupid if you don't know how much of a burden you've been to my family!" The yellow blonde snapped, "You've taken everything away from me the moment you stepped into this house-"_

_The yellow blonde was cut off when Sakura took a couple of steps towards him and hugged him tightly, clinging on to his shirt and burying her face into his chest. Deidara, flabbergasted, looked down at the pink haired beauty with widened eyes, slightly twitching._

_"Just stop! All this time, growing up with you in this home, I've watched you walk in and out of the house with such high confidence that it made me wonder: maybe one day I will be as confident and strong as you. Growing up here, I wanted to gain your acceptance...and maybe even your love. You can't continue to-"_

_Now it was Sakura's turn to be cut off when she felt Deidara place his arms around her hesitantly. Never did he feel such warmth from another person and never did he realize how big of a heart Sakura had and had enough love to give to those she cared for._

_Sakura did not want to moment she's been waiting for, the moment she never thought would come to be ruined so she kept silent. Each passing second, she would feel his embrace tighten around her and she could swear she felt him crying as well._

**-End of Flashback-**

Sakura came back to her senses when she felt a cold breeze run down her spine. She did not have a good feeling about something. But what? No doubt something was wrong, she trusted her instincts and at the moment she was not feeling comfortable. Sakura shook the thought away and stood tall; she was not about to lose her determination just yet. The roseate turned on her heel and began to rush back towards the city; she needed to be around people.

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Sakura pulled out a couple of bills from her backpack and handed it to the man in exchange for a bowl of ramen. She hasn't had that in a while! Back in Iwagakure, she would either eat spicy food or a lot of vegetables which helped her maintain the figure she has now. Especially with the excessive training she has received from her master, it kept her in excellent shape. As she parted away from the ramen stand in the park, the pink haired girl decided to take a seat on one of the near by benches next to a small water fountain. The laughter of a group of playful kids caught her attention and it reminded Sakura of the time when she and her friends would hang out in the park at this time of the day. She found it disappointing how she never ran into any of her friends since her arrival. Not even Naruto who would be all over the place with this up-to-no-good schemes. The day she could be reunited with them is when she can truly be at ease once again, and she'd anticipate for that day to come.

After she was done eating her lunch, the roseate decided to wander deeper into the city. The day was welcomed with a bright blue cloudless sky and a radiant sun. The weather was perfect and Sakura was hoping to buy some clothes with the remaining money she had left. Speaking of money, it struck Sakura that she was running out and she needed a job as soon as possible. Not only that, but she needed an apartment or any place she could call "home." For the past week she had slept in the park or she would sneak into the train station and sleep in the girl's bathroom. The hopeful roseate let out a heavy sigh; this was definitely not going to be easy. Sakura's attention then went to the gathering crowd of the media in front of the entrance of a tall and fancy edifice. Sakura gazed open-mouthed at how tall and big the building was. In front of the building, in big letters spelled "Suna Corporations." It must be an important company, thought the pink haired girl. Her attention then landed upon a dark blonde woman dressed in a formal business suit rushing towards the doors of the building to ignore the oncoming questions of the media.

"Oh my goodness, is that Gaara-sama!?" squealed a couple of girls not far from Sakura.

"It is! Let's push our way through and get a closer look at him!"

"Oh, he's so cool and hot!"

The group of girls stampeded their way towards the crowd, leaving Sakura dumbfounded about who was the big shot they were talking about. Probably some rich, stuck up jerk like the rest of the business men. Well, except for her step father, he never was the type to throw his money around like some other big shots. Usually, he was more reserved and was a family guy rather than a business man despite the fact he spent more time at his company. But even so, he wouldd get off early than he is supposed to spend time with his family. Suddenly, a black (and probably expensive) car pulled up infront of the building and the media noticed immediately and began to assemble around the parked vehicle, waiting for the big shot to step out of his car. Sakura rolled her eyes heavily away and just as she was about to turn away, a man with crimson red hair stepped out of the car. She takes a closer look at the red-headed big shot, taking a couple of steps closer, curious as to who was the man those girls were fawning over.

"You've got to be kidding me! The man looks like he's trouble!" Sakura stated out loud, noticing more people gathering around him. The guy was definitely not attractive as those girls said he was and he certainly gave Sakura the creeps. He seemed cold, fearsome, mysterious yet very relaxed in a way. She took another step closer, scrunching up her nose. The roseate found the guy familar...as if she has seen him before. Until it hit her,

"Oh no, it's the same guy I bumped in to," wondered the pink haired girl. She stopped dead in her tracks when emerald met jade once again; leaving her dumbfounded. Those eyes, those mint-cool eyes looked like it held many secrets and the unknown which made Sakura feel anxious; this guy was indeed trouble. The red-head creased his brow and did not let go of her eyes for a second. Shaking her head, Sakura turned on her heel and sped off to avoid any conflicts she could have brought up with the guy. For some odd reason, Sakura felt the need to look back and she did. The last image she saw from the crowd before she turned a corner was the red-headed man trying to peak from above the crowd, trying to not lose sight of the roseate.

* * *

><p><strong>-Earlier that day-<strong>

Another day of work for the red-head and he was dreading it. Again, one of those long and annoying meetings were to begin in an hour and Gaara was not looking forward to hearing anymore absurd ideas about the release of the company's new technology. Some of the members thought it should be released as soon as possible while others believe it should be released in stores at the same time as the new invention of another company. "To give it some completion," one of them had said on their last meeting.

As Gaara was done buttoning up his shirt, he looked out the window to see the busy city from above and the beeping cars lined up on the streets; that meant traffic. He had to get a move on if he wanted to be on time. The head-executive of the company was not expected to arrive on time more like expected to arrive at least ten minutes early to settle down. The red-head sighed, he needed to focus today especially since the celebration of the anniversary of the alliances was coming up, but he just could not get his mind off of Naruto. The search for the girl the other day did not go as planned, for they found absolutely no clues whatsoever about the missing friend of theirs. What hurt Gaara the most was to see the only person he considered his true friend, disappointed. Naruto was determined to find his friend no matter what, even if it meant he would have to search for her on his own. The man was getting impatient.

Once Gaara left his apartment and hopped in his black Lamborghini; he was off to work. While driving, Gaara growled under his breath and could not help but worry about his friend. He was frustrated he couldn't be more of help to Naruto. Yeah, he was cheerful and tried to maintain his charisma but he couldn't fool Gaara. The red-head read the sadness in his eyes better than anyone, he was not easy to be fooled. He knew Naruto better than anyone, and Naruto knew him better than anyone as well.

"This Sakura is causing Naruto some misery. Whatever her reason was to have disappeared without a trace, it's best she has a good one," Gaara states as he stops on a red light. He then sees Temari's car pull up in front of the building and could already hear the commotion of the gathering media. He somewhat felt bad for his sister for she had to step out of the car and tried to avoid the news reporters but that would soon be Gaara. Even worst since he is the one who owns the company. The redhead sighed heavily as he closed his eyes, he had the urge to shift to the next lane and turn a left to head towards a relaxing place at the park, but he knew he had to get this meeting over with. Besides, everything needed to go according to plan for the celebration of the alliances. As he pulled upfront, he stepped out of the car and handed his keys over to the valet standing by his car. Gaara was ready for questions and braced himself as the crowd swarmed over his way once they noticed his car pull up.

A newsreporter from Konoha Wind 7 reached his cardioid mic far enough towards Gaara and shouted, "Gaara-sama, is it true that Suna Corps will be holding the Alliance Celebration here in Konohagakure and not in Iwagakure like the previous years?"

"Yes, it is true. Now if you excuse me, please, I have a meeting to organize," answered Gaara in his most professional tone. The crowd only squeezed more and Gaara was about to lose his patience as some of the reporters and journalists would just step in his way and block him from the entrance of the building. The red-head was about to push his way through when he spots a familiar figure from the corner of his eye. He turned his head to the direction of the figure and he locked his mint jade eyes with a pair of bright emerald. Gaara creased his brow; that girl seemed rather odd. He felt as if he's seen her somewhere before. He has it on the tip of his tongue. Just as the light bulb in his head was about to light up, several girls began to block his sight and yell his name out. But Gaara did not pay any attention to them or the media crew, he wanted to see that girl. That girl with the emerald-green eyes and pink hair...and that's when it struck him.

"It's her!" Gaara says to himself, under his breath, and tried his best to look over the crowd only to see she was no where in sight.

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"Correct, the head executive of Explosion Corps and his people will be attending the next meeting to discuss about the confirmation of the release date of our latest technology," answered Kankuro to one of the members, "and everything has already been prepared for the day of the celebration."

Gaara was trying his best not stray off from the discussion but he could not help but wonder about that girl; Sakura, Naruto's friend. The friend whom made Naruto and the others ponder over her disappearance until today. It was her no doubt about it, she fit the description perfectly and only she could fit such a rendition. Not only that, but it was the exact girl whom had crashed on to him that one day after having dinner with his siblings. Of course! How could he not remember? The redhead swore to himself silently. If he had realized sooner maybe he would have her under his watch. It was pointless to inform Naruto about it now, since she could be anywhere in the city once again. Heck, the girl has been everywhere! By the italian restaurant in the city, the pool, and now by his company? Gaara was hoping that by the end of the meeting he could go home, take a hot bath, and think over what he had just been through today. Maybe even perceive the pink haired girl again.

"Everything has been paid off. Explosion Corps had paid for our stay when the events were held in Iwagakure. We have covered the financial costs for their time here in Konoha on the day of the meeting until the day of the celebration. Our way of saying Thank You since they have done the same for us when the celebrations were held there," Temari added, "Konoha Corps has also confirmed the acceptance of the invitations from other companies."

"Um, I am aware that Daichi is no longer the president of Explosion Corporations, and please excuse me for missing this piece of information. But, who is the owner of that company now?"

Kankuro sighed and slightly shook his head, could there really be air-heads asking questions like these after working in the company for over a month?

Temari nudged Kankuro with her elbow, "go easy on the guy he's only started working his about a month ago," whispered the dark blonde to her brother.

"Well, Daichi-sama passed away and left his fortune over to his only son who could not have any ownership over the company since he was underage. But for the past 3 years, he's been in charge of Daichi-sama's company now that he 21 years old or so. His name is Deidara."

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Before Temari exited the building, she decided to stop by at her little brother's office to say good-bye, but he was not inside. She thought it was weird of him. Usually he would stay up a bit later going over some things on his computer. The dark blonde shrugged it off and headed towards the exit. Once outside, she was welcomed by a warm breeze that played with the loose strands of her hair. It was a long, no doubt, and Temari felt that she earned herself a little treat to the coffee shop. She's been craving for an iced mocha latte all day! Her silver convertible was driven upfront by the valet and as soon as she got on the car, she thanked the man and sped off. The night seemed peaceful and the ruckus of traffic in the evening had receided. The dark blonde decided to leave the roof opened since she was enjoying the night summer breeze gently tapping her face.

"Call, Gaara," commanded Temari to the car. The screen showed Gaara's number being dialed and the dark blonde waited for him to pick up. After three more attempts, she gave up. Whatever he was doing, must be with that money-chasing whore of his. That Kira would simply not leave him out of her sight for a second and Temari found simply HATED how the snob would go around spreading rumors about her supposed engagement with Gaara. The most annoying part to it was that she would deny it. Not that it was any of her business, but being the big sister she is she knew had to watch over her little brother and protect him, especially from sly women like Kira. Kankuro knew how to take care on himself no matter how many times Temari has reminded him who was the oldest. Besides that, just the thought of the woman with her brother at the moment, down right pissed her off. She commanded to have Gaara's number dialed again but the called had failed. Frustrated, the dark blonde cursed aloud and tapped the screen. Once her eyes were focused on the road again the sight of a girl crossing the street came to view and Temari hit the brakes as hard as she could, the wheels of the car screeching loudly and echoing into the night. The dark blonde's eyes widened as she heard the sound of the girl's body collide against the front of the car and land roughly on the concrete floor.

The dark blonde hopped out of the car and quickly examined the girl. Just her luck. She let her senses stray off and now she could be in the deepest shit she has ever been into. This would definitely not look good on her behalf but she had no choice but to call an ambulance, she couldn't just leave the poor girl there. Before Temari could finish dialing, the stranger groaned and tried lifting up her head.

"Hey! Are you alright?!" Temari asked, frantically.

The girl with bright pink hair did not respond. She tried to lift her head up again, but later plopped back on the concrete floor with a soft thud.

Temari sighed, luckily it was not a serious impact. She had stopped on time, but not fast enough to avoid hitting her. The dark blonde cocked her head slightly and examined the girl's face carefully; she has seen her before. A couple of minutes flew by and Temari had already recognized from where she had last seen the girl.

Not taking any chances of appearing on the front newspaper or on the news, she quickly picked up the pink-haired stranger and placed her carefully in the back of her car. She hopped on to the driver's seat and sighed; she was absolutely not going to tell her little brother any of this or else he would be doing the scolding. Gaara already had enough on his plate to deal with at the moment. But Temari knew she had to call someone so she decided to call Kankuro...when she arrived home of course. The pink-haired stranger groaned in pain again, making Temari glance at her from the rearview mirror.

"Heh, it's peculiar how we meet again. You sure like to wander around carelessly dontcha, kid?"

* * *

><p>"-and so we will be departing to our destination by tomorrow night, Master Deidara, since flights have been canceled due to the thunderstorms we have had recently," stated one of the yellow-blondes workers.<p>

Deidara nodded and continued to look ahead, lost in thought. As the members continued to assemble over the topic of the meeting, Deidara could only think about Sakura, the little prick who decided to escape his grasp. He was angered, upset, and hurt that she would leave him without saying anything. But then again, he would treat her like shit and had many reasons to leave his ass, but that was the only way the yellow-blonde could express his feelings towards her. At times he would degrade her and at times he would show up at her bed room door with a couple of roses.

The man was confused. Sure, the little pink haired prick basically ruined his relationship with his father and almost took the fortune his father had put in his will, but he could not deny that he had fallen inlove with her over the course of time since that day. After that moment, the yellow blonde did not know what to feel towards Sakura. Hate or love? It was a mix of emotions when it came to her and it drove him crazy. He wanted to hate her for the rest of his life, but at the same time he wanted to welcome that new feeling that had erupted for her. But now that she has gone, how on earth was he supposed feel now? Who would he come home to? He had her under his command. The little prick was as good as his as she was for anyone else. Never did he think she would run away. Deidara hated her for being so misunderstanding; he thought she knew that she deserved to be treated the way she was for invading his home. Where the heck would she go without any money? How could she leave knowing she'd leave her luxuries behind. One thing he knew for sure was that he was going to bring her back. The yellow blonde was coming up with different locations of where the pink haired girl could have escaped to until:

"Everything is settled then. We shall depart to Konoha tomorrow night," confirmed one of the members.

_Of course,_ Deidara smirked as he set both hands down on the table.

* * *

><p><strong>Until next time! I will be updating sometime next week. Again sorry for the long wait and I hope you enjoyed this chapter!<strong>

**I am sorry it was not so exciting ;_;**

**Anyways, everyone stay warm! (or cool!**)


	4. We Finally Meet

"_Hey! Wait!" shouted Sakura loud enough for the unknown man to turn around and face her._

"_I can tell by you're scar, you must mean real business. But I was just wondering, why are you doing this for ME?" Sakura takes a step closer, squinting to get a better view at the blurred figure._

"_I'm not doing this for you, but for a dear friend of mine that I wish to help. To stop the misery that you've caused him for quite some time," replied the blurred figure in such a calm yet raspy tone._

_Sakura could only look at him, confused. The figure turned away before Sakura could take a better look at him. Before she could question him once more, the man stops abruptly and slightly turns to look at Sakura in the eye, "Since you won't let me find you, the least you can do is keep your eyes on the lookout for him. Believe me, he's not hard to spot. He will recognize you in a heartbeat."_

* * *

><p>"HEY! Wake up already, will you?"<p>

"Huh? Wah?" Sakura shot right up and couldn't quite see because of the sun's mean glare. Groggily, she yawned and rubbed her eyes to force the blur out of her vision. She blinked a couple of times and turned to the dark blonde woman sitting right beside her, reaching out with a wet cloth to her forehead.

Sakura let herself be aided by the woman but was about to bombard her with tons of questions: the what, where, and why.

The dark blonde chuckled coolly and raised an eyebrow, "Well someone's a good girl. I wish my brother would let me pamper him like this sometimes!"

Now it was Sakura's turn to raise an eyebrow along with a slight smile, "Umm where am I? What exactly happened last night, mam?"

"Mam? Hah! Call me Temari. I bet ya our age differences aren't that far apart," she grunted teasingly and stood up to leave the room. A few minutes later, Temari returned with a tray of breakfast and placed it on a nightstand beside Sakura. The sweet scent of the warm cinnibons filled her nostrils and her stomach growled hungrily in response.

Sakura thanked the dark blonde politely, and gulped down the glass of milk along with the plate of mini cinnibons, "Thank you so much, Temari. But I'm not used to taking charity from strangers. Especially taking things that don't belong to me-"

"It's no problem! After almost running you over last night, I figured it would be the right thing to do this. Thankfully it wasn't anything serious; you just received a blow to head from the landing. Besides, it seems to me that you don't have a place to go to after spotting you wandering around in the same clothes a couple of times before," Temari picked up Sakura's tray and disappeared out of the master bedroom once again.

"Wow!" Sakura gasped as she finally took a good look around her surroundings. The room was indeed vast; much bigger than her room back at the Minamoto Mansion. The bed she laid on had beautiful designs on both ends. The curtains were a satin red with fancy designs and a gold fabric as the outlines. By looking out the window, Sakura knew it couldn't be a mansion judging at how high they were from the ground. It must be some kind of condominium; a real fancy one!

"Are you new in this city? What about your parents? Mind to tell me why you are homeless- erm…I'm sorry but what's your name?" Temari asked, leaning against the doorway with her arms crossed.

Sakura glanced out the window again, admiring the view, then turned to look at the dark blonde, "My name is Sakura. Haruno Sakura. I used to live in this city until my parents had passed away."

Temari's grin suddenly wore off a bit into a more saddened look, "I'm sorry to hear that, Sakura. I didn't mean to ask anything too personal."

Sakura shook her head and smiled, "Oh no, it's ok! You didn't know. I was about ten years old at the time and had no idea what to do since we weren't financially well. But then this really nice rich man who was in town had taken me to his home. I don't mean to tell you my entire life story," the roseate chuckled, "I wasn't exactly happy over there as I was with my parents here in Konoha. Despite the fact we were poor, my life was better than it was during my years back at the mansion. After some years later, I decided to come here and leave Iwa-"

Sakura was cut off suddenly when the doorbell rang continuously.

Temari quickly apologized and rushed out of the bed room to get the door. Sakura looked out the window once more. Things really did change around the city after she had left. The way she remembered Konoha was a small and still-growing town. Now, it's expanded and one could easily get lost without any sense of direction. Tall edifices were constructed and more advanced technology was brought to the city. If things were now this advanced, then Sakura's interest in the medical field grew even more.

"Hey sis! I brought some food!"

Sakura turned towards the doorway as she heard the voice of a man echo down the hallway. She slowly got off from the bed and made her way out into the semi-vast living room. Sakura couldn't believe at how beautiful and big this condo was than a mansion! The roseate came to halt when she spotted a tall fit man with tattooed line patterns on his face, standing beside the counter of the kitchen.

"Kankuro, this is the girl I was telling you about last night. Sakura this is my brother Kankuro."

Kankuro examined Sakura which made her feel a bit uncomfortable. She always felt nervous when someone would examine her figure since she didn't know what they were thinking on the inside. But if they were to state something negative, she would give that person a good punch.

"Hey! I'm sorry my sis almost killed ya last night-" Kankuro was interrupted by a flabbergasted Temari who nudged his arm.

Sakura giggled and extended her hand out while walking up to him, "It's not a problem at all. She didn't hit me too bad."

Sakura came to like Kankuro and Temari a lot while conversing with them at the kitchen table and eating some ramen take-out Kankuro had brought. It didn't take Sakura long to figure out the two were siblings and very powerful. It turns out the two are a part of Suna Corporations and played crucial roles in the company.

Aside from getting along with the siblings, she realized they were being friendly and calm about the situation: her being homeless, jobless, and not having a place to stay. Temari did not hesitate to offer Sakura to remain in the apartment until she gets back up on her feet. After they were done eating, Kankuro suggested they take Sakura out for a ride until it was time to go back to the company and attend the late night meeting that was postponed for later that day. They didn't tell her why and Sakura did not expect them to since it was about the company's business.

"Sakura, I laid out a couple of outfits of mine you can wear for today. You can go change while Kankuro and I wait here," stated the dark blonde.

Sakura nodded and went to the bedroom she had slept in to go change from her previous clothes. Deep down, she wondered why they were being this nice, and thought it was very noble of them to be able to take care of her this way. For the very first time in a while, she has never felt this welcomed into a home she's never been to before.

* * *

><p>"She seems like a cool chick! I'm surprised you even decided to take her in. You're not the type to be <em>this<em> nice, especially to strangers. Anyways, I like her…have you told Gaara what you've gotten yourself into though?" Kankuro asked, scratching his head and reaching over the table for his drink.

Kankuro was right. Temari was not the type to do something this noble to anyone she was not familiar with. Come to think of it, she never liked letting anyone stay in her home while she was not present. That day when the pink haired girl had bumped into Gaara, Temari noticed her bruised arms and legs. And she definitely knew she had stolen those apples out of desperate hunger. The dark blonde just did not have the heart to turn away from Sakura. Not now. She knew she had to help the rosette start over.

Temari sighed thoughtfully and shrugged, "No I haven't and I don't think I am going to anytime soon. I don't want to worry Gaara with this. Besides, that day she bumped into Gaara after leaving the restaurant, our little brother seemed rather disturbed about her."

"Well, I can bring her food sometime during the day when you're stuck back at the office," Kankuro offered.

Temari chuckled, "Kankuro, she's not a lost pet! I'm sure she can handle things on her own while I'm not here. But go right ahead."

"Well," Kankuro yawned heavily and laid his back against the couch, "she's your load now!"

Temari looked at her brother bluntly. But deep down, Kankuro knew he would help Temari with Sakura, "so where do we take her to in downtown?"

Temari shot her brother a smug look, "take us to the mall. I think I shall treat myself and my guest to shopping. She could use a few more outfits! The poor girl has nothing but the clothes she's wearing now and a bag she's been carrying around. I have so much money stored up, I don't know what else to do with it!"

Kankuro groaned disappointedly. He was not the type to go the mall and stare at clothes for hours on end like some women do, in his opinion. It was the most dreadful way to kill time. But, there's no arguing with Temari and so he accepted into taking them there.

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Temari arrived at the building shortly after leaving Sakura back at her apartment. The dark blonde forgot how much fun it was to spend time with someone accompanied by her brother. Unfortunately, Kankuro had to leave a bit early since he had to prepare a few things before the meeting. They had gone from the mall, an ice cream shop, to a couple of more shoe stores in town. Being stuck in the building almost the entire day each week was tiring and life-taking. It's been a while since she has been out like that. Temari entered the building with a beaming smile and a straight professional posture as usual. The week has sure been quite bizarre for her.

Temari picked up a couple of portfolios for the meeting. Inside the portfolio contained the company's financial documents which Temari is in charge of. She then left her office and headed straight towards the councils room. It was going to be a long night, no doubt.

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"Sure, I'd love to go, Shikamaru. If you stop sounding so bored just for a second!" the dark blonde teased, "oh, Naruto wants to speak with Gaara? Well he should be preparing his things in the office and getting ready to leave by now. I'll go see if he's in there. Don't hang up!"

The meeting had dragged for about three hours. The members were in a bit of a debate of the expenses the company was going to spend on the allied visitors. As she made her way down the hallway, she stopped in front of Gaara's office and knocked a couple of times.

"Come in," Gaara said through the other side.

Temari entered his office and told Shikamaru to put Naruto on the phone, "Here, Naruto's been trying to reach you."

The dark blonde stared at her younger brother as he talked on the phone. His face; it would somewhat lighten up whenever he is talking to Naruto; the man who saved her brother from falling any deeper into darkness. Her eyes then moved up to look at the scar, a kanji love symbol, on the side of his forehead. She knew he wasn't fully recovered yet. Both Kankuro and Temari were fully aware that Naruto did pull him out of his misery and showed him the light instead. But both siblings hoped for that one day to come: the day when someone special would enter Gaara's life and wait for him at the end of that light; that light which Naruto had guided him towards.

"Temari, here," Gaara handed Temari's phone back to her.

"Well? Are you going with us?" Temari asked.

Gaara only shook his head in response, not saying another word.

Temari wasn't about to give up just yet. Him going home only to see a half-naked Kira trying to seduce her little brother only angered her and would do anything to prevent him from seeing that witch.

"Come on, Gaara. You work every day, it won't hurt if you go out for the night! Besides, you'll be under my supervision!"

"And you think I want to be pampered by my sister throughout the entire time?" retorted Gaara in his relaxed and serious tone.

Temari sighed, trying not to lose her patience with her brother, "I'm bringing a friend along with me, I'm sure you two will get along great!" _As if! Sakura and Gaara are complete opposites. Either Gaara will bore Sakura to death or Sakura will just scare Gaara away! _"Do it for Naruto, Gaara. He needs you there. You were saying how he's been upset about not finding his friend, so he probably wants you by his side! To have fun, Gaara. You need to live a little."

She got him with that. Gaara sighed as he looked out the window of his office and he nodded, "I'll be at your door shortly after ten."

The dark blonde smiled smugly. It was a complete success.

_I just can't let him know about the problem. Other than that...I hope they will get along._

* * *

><p>The pink haired girl decided she would go out for a stroll outside. She picked out a pair of denim jeans and a red t-shirt Temari had gotten her from the mall. Quickly, she brushed her hair and was out the door. The city was alive.<p>

Sakura looked into the night sky. She was expecting to see stars as the roseate does back in the countryside of the city, away in the little corner of the world. Instead, Sakura's eyes was filled with bright neon and electronic billboards that brightened the night sky so not even a twinkling star can show its light down on her. The never-ending head lights was blinding her, and for a moment she wished she was looking at the beauty of her country home away from the city. But tonight Sakura wanted to find the beauty of the city.

Instead of the familiar sounds of her home by the lake where crickets dance their symphonic sounds, it had been replaced with the roar of the crowd, the honk of car horns, a police siren screams to life behind her from what seems like everywhere. A loud soaring plane passed by from high above in the sky. Konoha definitely progressed much farther than Iwagakure did.

Sakura walked along the many shops that were aligned down each block. A humble shop from which aromas of fresh, home-made sweets that filled the air caught her attention immediately. The sign above the bakery read: "Yamanaka's Bakery: A place in which hunger, the most basic of human needs, can be replaced with the satisfaction of tiny drops of heaven in a divine and fulfilling manner." Indeed, it was right! The shop was a place where happiness for the belly and completion of the soul can be found. Her senses brought her to go inside the bakery shop.

"Hello! Welcome to Yamanaka's Bakery!" Sweetly greeted a woman with a pair of glasses and intense bright red hair from behind the counter, "HEY BUDDY! Either pay for that or get the heck out of here!"

A boy turned to look at the sales lady with a mouthful of cookies and crumbs scattered on his chin then shot his way for the exit.

_Man…she has about the same temper as I do…_

"I've never seen you around before. You must be new in town," stated the woman.

Sakura walked over to where she stood, "I guess you can say that."

The pink haired girl looked around the shop and carefully glanced at each sweet that caught her eye. A couple of minutes later, the sales lady walked over and stood by Sakura, "would you like to try one? New customers get to try a free sample. Choose whatever you like!"

Sakura smiled excitedly as she turned away from the woman. There was so much to choose from, it seemed impossible for her to pick! There was fluffy kind of cake that caught her attention, though. It seemed as if it were drenched in some kind of milk and had some classy custard layer in between, "I'll have that one, please!"

"Aah! That's one of our best sellers yet; Yamanaka's Drenched Sponge Cake! I'll cut you a piece and have it wrapped in a box for ya! I'll be right back!"

"Thank you so much, erm…" Sakura leaned a bit close towards the woman to read her name tag, "ah! Thanks so much, Karin."

The girl shifted her glasses and smiled. She then grabbed the tray of the sweet and took it to the back of the counter to have it cut. _I wish I had money to bring a piece to Temari. I'll just give her this piece! She's done so much for me already...and she's barely known me for a day._

"I cut up two chunks for you," stated Karin from across the shop.

Sakura looked up, interrupted from her thoughts, and her eyes widened, "Really? Thank you, Karin!"

Karin flashed her a sweet smile and disappeared to the back again.

The bells on the door clanged as they swung opened, making Sakura glance over to see the incoming customers. A couple of men in business suits made their way towards the pie section. Next, entered a tall voluptuous woman whose hair hung low in between her bosom in the shop. Sakura couldn't help but notice the woman's glamorous clothing and the way it hugged her curves extremely well. The woman walked up to the counter, ignoring Sakura's existence, and tapped her long fingernails impatiently against it. The two men who were chatting with each other walked back and stopped to get a good view at the goddess. The woman found interest in one of the guys. She walked over to them, whispered a few words into his ear and handed him a card she slipped from her purse. The guys forgot what they even wanted to get and had left the shop, beaming over something.

Karin then reappeared out from the back with a bright pink box tied with a cute red bow in hand, "Here's your-"

"About time you came back, girl. I'm here to pick up my order for my Gaara and it better be ready. I have waited long enough! How long does it take to make a bunch of stupid chocolates!?" exclaimed the woman in an ill-mannered tone.

_Gaara? Why does that name sound familiar,_ Sakura glanced over to the woman and examined her: the woman was dressed in a very flamboyant way and Sakura's guess was that she could be Gaara's lover by the way she claimed him as hers. _If only her attitude were as good as her looks, she wouldn't be so nasty._

Karin forced a smile through clenched teeth, and placed Sakura's order down carefully only to go disappear into the back to fetch the woman her order.

The roseate tried her best to avoid eye contact with the rude woman, for she did not want any problems.

Karin had reappeared and handed the woman her wrapped box of chocolates. But the woman pushed the box back roughly towards Karin, "I demand another order free of charge and I want it wrapped as well. I'm not paying taxes for nothing, kid."

Karin sighed and heavily rolled her eyes back to her work, only to receive another menacing remark from the woman.

Sakura's fists clenched, her knuckles whitening.

"Yeah, you can't say shit to me like last time. Keep the snotty act up and you'll hear from me again. The next time you do, you'll be out on the streets-"

"Leave her alone, will you?! She's doing her job what else do you want from her?! Karin is NOT your servant! How about you go back to your precious boyfriend and ask him to keep you on a damn leash!" snarled the pink-haired spitfire. The woman looked Sakura from head to toe and raised an eyebrow. Flipping her hair over to the opposite side, she snickered loudly and took the box back from Karin and left the shop without saying another word.

Karin's shocked expression soon softened as she turned to face Sakura. She couldn't believe she had just shut down the girl of one of the richest guys in town, "you didn't have to do that. But thanks, I appreciate what you did there. I couldn't afford to get another warning from my boss. I must say, we have about the same temper!"

Sakura chuckled and received the order by Karin, "Don't sweat it. She was being very nasty, and I don't like to see others put down. I could only wonder what her boyfriend is like."

"He's a hunk, that's for sure! He's quiet and keeps to himself most of the time. If you ask me, it seems to me like Gaara is Kira's next target. She's been with almost all of the rich hotshots here in town! With a body like that, I can see why. But I sometimes wonder how he even puts up with her. Anyways, you have a nice day! Don't hesitate to come back."

Sakura tilted her head slightly, smiling. Waving goodbye, she turned to step out the door.

"Hold on! I didn't catch your name!" called out Karin.

Sakura stopped and half-turned to the red-eyed woman, "my name is Sakura!"

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It was 10 o'clock sharp. The hours flew by and the night was more alive than ever. You would think the majority would want to go home on a Friday night and sleep in from a long day at work. However, the bars clubs and restaurants were opened and full of people! Sakura wished to explore more but the roseate knew she had to make it back so Temari would not be disturbed if she was already asleep. As Sakura entered the apartment, she saw Temari sitting on the couch completely dressed in a flashy outfit.

"Hello Temari! Umm…I don't remember you going to work like that," she teased.

Temari giggled and got up to greet Sakura, "Let's get you dressed, Sakura. We're about to go on a night out with the guys!"

"WHAT!? Guys? What guys?!" Sakura asked, a bit shocked.

"Well this guy I really like has asked me to go to one of Konoha's main clubs in towns with some of his friends tonight," Temari explained, finding Sakura's reaction rather amusing.

Sakura was about to meet…more rich snobs like Kira? Chances are slim judging at how different Temari and Kankuro were from other high officials, "Oooh so he's your date then? You _boyfriend_" The roseate then asked, teasing the dark blonde.

A light red color spread across Temari's cheeks and she nodded, "a friend of his is bringing his date as well. It turns out his friend had invited my little brother to come along so I thought it would be a perfect way you two could meet!"

_Temari's younger brother? I don't remember them mentioning they had a younger sibling._ The youngest meant the less experienced and most likely the more immature. At the moment, she wished it was Kankuro who was going. What if they didn't get along?

Despite that factor, her wish had come true. Sakura has never been to a club before and the thoughts of what kind of music or people you'd meet in one excited her. Not wasting another second, the girls hurried to the guest room. Temari quickly went over the clothes she had picked out for Sakura and in a split second had an outfit ready for the roseate. Once she handed her the clothes, Sakura went inside the bathroom and threw on a green mint crop top and a pair of high waist black shorts.

"Uh, Temari?" Sakura called out from the bathroom, in an uneasy tone.

"What is it?"

Sakura peeked shyly from the bathroom, not wanting to come out, "I've never worn clothes like these before."

Temari could only giggle at the poor innocent girl behind the bathroom door. Even so, she encouraged Sakura to come out and assured her that she looked perfectly fine. Sakura noticed Temari's breasts were rather large, making Sakura glance at her own and sighing disappointedly. But as she looked at the mirror once more, she couldn't help but wear a satisfying smile on. Never did she think she would have worn clothes like the ones she was wearing now. The last time she did was when Deidara had brought her to some celebration of the company as his date back in Iwagakure. She was the type to not worry much about what to wear one day or the next.

A few minutes later, Temari and Sakura stepped into the living room and sat down on the couch chatting a bit longer until someone knocked on the door. Getting up from the couch, the dark blonde made her way towards the door and opened it, "Good to see you'd come, Gaara."

For some unknown reason, Sakura's heartbeat began to pick up. Was it out of embarrassment due to her appearance? Or because she's about to meet the youngest sibling?

"Sakura come one don't be shy," Temari said smugly, "I want you to meet my little brother."

_That name again_. Slowly, she stood up from the couch and fought hard to turn around and face the man she wasn't looking forward to meeting. But when his blue mint orbs met with her sea foam-green eyes, Sakura's heart skipped a beat.

"My…my name is Gaara," said the red haired man with black rimmed eyes, extending his hand out. For some odd reason, he stared at her wide-eyed which slowly shifted to a slight frown.

Sakura walked up slowly to him, hesitating to take his hand into her own, "Nice to meet you, Gaara. My name is Haruno Sakura."


	5. When It Hits

**Chapter 5: When It Hits**

**Sakura's point of view**

I did not know what to think at first; I did not know how to react to such a look; to be able to look into such beautiful and soft serious eyes like his own. I felt as if I were staring into a fallen angel's eyes; the eyes of a person who's been through so much pain. Yet, the tone of his voice spooked me, sending shivers down my spine repeatedly. He was definitely creepy looking and I was really hoping for Temari's younger brother to at least look a bit like Kankuro. So we've encountered each other a few times before, big deal? Why was he looking at me as if I were a criminal? _Did the little incident upset him that much? Mr. Big Shot probably does not like to be touched by someone of a lower status than he is. I'll show him! _I thought angrily as we shook hands.

"You can let go of my hand now," I said firmly as I gently tugged my hand from his grasp. He seemed lost in his own thoughts. I wonder what was going on in his head? His eyes fell upon our conjoined hands and stared for what seemed like forever. He slightly tightened his grip; I can already tell he hates me.

"Uh let's get going, shall we?" Temari said, uneasily as she grabbed onto Gaara's arm and lead him out the door.

I followed behind as my eyes burned of curiosity onto the back of his head. This guy…he's so serious! Not only is he creepy but he seems like he has social issues. Being the head president of his company, he sure doesn't look like it. The red hair, the strange love scar on the side of his forehead and his black rimmed eyes; just what _was_ this guy? I wonder how Kankuro and Temari handled their "little" brother. Despite Kankuro's facial tattoos, he looked…normal? I don't know. One thing for sure, I did not want to get on Gaara's bad side.

As we approached a black marble fancy car, Gaara held the car door open for Temari. Just as I was about to get into the back seat, Gaara stopped me and opened the car door for me. The guy only looked at me, expressionless, and waited until I got inside.

"Thank you, Gaara. You're not as bad as your girlfriend," I said confidently. I was not about to let him scare me with his predatory gaze, nor was I going to make him think I'd cower before his expressionless stare. He only nodded as he shut his eyes slowly, shutting the car door closed.

I decided to look out the window as Gaara stepped onto the accelerator, when he asked "Temari, where did you meet your friend?"

Quickly, I set my attention on both of them.

"Oh I met her just yesterday, not far from the building," she answered as she turned to flash me a toothy smile.

"Hey Temari, you nor Kankuro didn't tell Mr. Big Shot was your younger sibling," I said suddenly.

"Well, I wanted it to be a little surprise," she answered while glancing at her brother.

We drove in silence for about a couple more minutes when Gaara decided to break the ice, "Are you new in town?" he asked. From the top mirror, Gaara's eyes gleamed in the darkness of the atmosphere and I could not help but hold his stare.

"Kind of. I resided in Iwagakure with my foster parents for quite some time until…well… a friend decided to drop me off here since he thought it was time for me to move on from that place. Besides, I really missed out on a lot around here!" _Way to go Sakura, go ahead and tell this man your entire life story! _

Gaara kept silent while Temari shot around completely, her attention on me, "Iwagakure?! No way! We've been collaborating with that town's biggest company for some time now! We've actually been there a couple of times ourselves for business," answered Temari completely shocked, not believing her ears, "you're definitely full of surprises, Sakura!"

Allied with the town's biggest company? From my knowledge, the most money-making company in Iwagakure was of my stepfather's, Explosion Corporations which was now owned by Deidara. Daichi, my stepfather, would always take me with him to work when he could and while Deidara was in school. During that time, I was not able to enroll yet since I did not have my identifications and documents of residency prepared. I remember there was one company they were trying to team up with, a big growing company in Konoha, Suna Corps. It was a close ally with Konoha's largest company and from what I can remember. They were always so bent up on staying close allies.

If they were in Iwagakure before...have I seen them before in one of the celebrations? Daichi took me a couple of times when I was younger, but ever since he passed away I've only attended the celebrations twice with Deidara as I got older.

My thoughts were soon interrupted when Gaara pulled up at the parking lot of the night club. Gaara, being the gentleman he _so_ pretended to be, opened the car door for me. He extended his hand out to help me out of the car. I slightly glared at him while doing so and stepped next to Temari who was looking extremely anxious.

"Temari, what's wrong?" I asked, placing my hand on the side of her arm.

Temari looked at me with wide eyes and a slight blush of red spread across her cheeks, "I'm so nervous I haven't been to one of these clubs in a while. Not with the man everyone thinks I like. It's so weird and annoying."

I teasingly nudged her arm with my elbow, "but _don't_ you like him, Temari? Come on, I can tell by the look on your face!"

Temari only looked away in response, making me laugh as I fell into step with her and Gaara by my side. The bass of the music could be felt a mile away and my excitement grew. As we reached the entrance to the club, Gaara held the door for us. Temari entered first and before I stepped inside he grabbed my arm and held me back for a second.

"Brace yourself. Don't expect a minor welcome from him," and with that being said he gestured for me to go inside.

As confused as I was about his statement, I entered. The guy was officially weird.

I walked into the Fire Wind Night Club, a big, flashy, neat big nightclub off the beaten path. From around the corner, I could hear the languid buzz of the eponymous neon marlin fish out front, providing a backdrop for the clinking of glasses and drone-like chatter of hundred best friends and lovers.

"Since you and I are here together, guess that means _you_ have no choice but to dance with me," I said teasingly to Gaara. In response, he shut his eyes and slightly…smiled?

As I entered deep into the joint, following Temari, the intermingled smells of smoke and sweat and clustered people instantly assaulted my nostrils as I inhaled deeply.

"I was not expecting the place to wreak of people's sweat!" I shouted to Temari through the loud noise and pushed my body through the pulsating throng. Finally finding their way to an empty bar stool in the corner, Temari caught the eye of a man with a spiked up pony tail, shook her head and smiled downward. Laughing to herself at the man who was leaning against a wall, smiling lazily at her. _That must be the guy Temari likes!_ Temari mouthed something to the bartender nearby, and he nodded and melted away into the cries of a hundred other thirsty patrons.

By now, my eyes were adjusting to the imminent darkness, tomblike and womblike at the same time. Bright spots of neon beer signs on the wall stood out, illuminating the faces and cleavage and mohawks of the crowd, while others disappeared into the contrasting blackness. It was a motley crew. _I…this familiar presence. Why is that guy staring at me like that? _I wondered. Gaara stood beside me as we approached to what seemed like their friends since they were waving at our direction. At the table was the guy Temari liked, a tanned blonde man with whisker-like hair on his cheeks, a guy with really bushy eyebrows and a bowl-cut, a raven haired girl with silver eyes and a couple of more people at the booth I could not see well due to the darkness and continuous flashes of light.

By the time we reached the table, the blonde man with the whiskers stood up from his seat, the group's eyes still on me. I felt Gaara push me forward gently, "You've kept them waiting long enough," he said into my ear. I turned to look at him, raising my brow, and as I spun around to look back at the staring crowd.

"Sakura! It's you!"

_That voice…it couldn't be them! _It didn't take me a second longer to recognize them. At that very moment, I never felt so happy and so relieved to be able to find them here of all places. And if I knew any better, Gaara was aware about them searching for me.

"Naruto!? Lee!? You guys!" In a split second I was in the arms of Naruto Uzumaki along with Rock Lee jumping in. I felt warm tears of joy stream down the side of my cheeks. I rubbed the tears from my eyes, but they just kept welling down. Through my blurred vision, I saw Ino slide from the booth and walk towards me.

Temari and Gaara left to stand by the bartender, knowing they really had no part in it. But before Temari left, she looked shocked and began asking Gaara many questions about the situation.

As I broke our mini group hug, I walked up to Ino and we stared at each other for a few minutes. She sure has changed from the last time I saw her. Her light blonde locks had grown down to her waist and has gotten taller, obviously. Ino frowned as a tear drop slid from her cheeks down her neck and lunged her hand back, sending it straight towards my face.

I was aware she would be angry with me, so I let her. Something inside told me it would be the right thing to do and not prevent it. The sound of skin on skin contact was drowned by the bass of the music and pounding feet on the floor. Naruto, Lee, and the rest stared at us wide-eyed.

"Why did you disappear on us like that, billboard brow!? Do you know how worried we were? We spent _years_ looking for you! Ugh!" she cried out desperately out of air.

"Sakura…I knew you would come back but…I didn't know when that day was going to arrive. None of us did. Why did you leave without telling us?" Naruto joined, wanting to know the answer to each of his questions.

I continued to stare at Ino and smiled, "will you forgive me if I explain the entire thing? Maybe then you guys won't be as upset with me."

Naruto, still hyped about the encounter, nodded quickly. As for Shikamaru, he also greeted me then Hinata as well. I almost could not dig up any memories of Hinata, since she was always so shy to even say a word to me. I guess it was because I scared her, but I do recall us playing around back when we were kids. We chatted for hours on end and decided to leave any grudges and pent up anger aside. Shikamaru left the conversation to go spend time with Temari while Gaara disappeared into the crowd of people. He was probably longing to get out of the place. He didn't seem like the type to go to a place like this one.

xxxxxxxxxxx

Ino had told me of her mother's new business she had opened up. Then informed me how TenTen and Hinata became one of the best bakers at their bakery. Meanwhile, Naruto remained practicing his martial arts and eventually becoming a master himself, being able to reach Kakashi and Guy's level. I sure did miss out on a lot of things while I was gone like: Sasuke leaving the village (I had the biggest crush on him), Chouji becoming a world champion at wrestling and at boxing. What struck me the most was when Naruto told me of his friendship with Gaara, they have met a while back. They started off on the wrong foot but now it seems as if he was one of Naruto's closest friends. Odd as it was, this entire time Gaara knew who I was the minute he saw me at Temari's apartment. No, let's go back a little: when I was outside their building and there was a posse of media people surrounding him, he had wanted to reach me. All of this seemed too surreal.

As we parted ways, Naruto told me repeatedly where to find him. He and Hinata had left together (a lot sure did happen while I was gone). Oh how I missed that knucklehead, he sure has grown up though. As for Ino, she demanded me to stop by her bakery every day so we could catch up. Temari had explained to them about my staying with her in her apartment until I got a job. Speaking of Temari, she told me she would meet me back at the apartment and left with Shikamaru because he had to talk to her about something in _private._ The entire time, Naruto wouldn't stop bugging the two.

"Hey Gaara! Stop by at the dojo by noon. Bushy brow, Neji and I mastered new techniques you may be interested in learning. Unles you're too scared!" Teased the blonde.

Gaara only grinned slightly and nodded.

xxxxxxxxxxx

Unfortunately, I was left alone with Gaara. We were silent for what seemed like an eternity. I could barely hear the guy breathe! I did not feel comfortable…being next to him in a parked car.

"where did you meet her?" he asked.

I slightly turned to look at him from the passenger's seat. I already knew who he was referring to, "at a bakery which turned out to be the one Ino owns. She sure is pretty; however looks can be deceiving."

More silence. I began fidgeting with the necklace Daichi had given me. It was the only thing I had left of the man who took me in, along with the memories.

"I thought I could be quite fond of you until you had to speak," Gaara replied in the most relaxed yet serious tone. It was unbelievable how calm he sounded even when provoking an argument.

"Hah! Go figure! I thought you were some guy up to no good with really bad taste in women," I added. I turned to look at him again while he continued to look ahead, staring into nothingness.

At last, he decided to take me back to Temari's apartment. We barely conversed throughout the drive there. He must have some kind of social issues, for his answers were precise and short. He didn't need to speak on, he just found ways to make his answers short and quick.

He parked in front of the apartment and I didn't wait for him to open the door for me.

"Hey Gaara," I said waiting for him to at least acknowledge my presence. But he wouldn't budge out of his staring competition with whatever it was he stared into, "Thank you…for helping me and my friends find each other."

I did not wait for his one-word responses, and got out of the car. Temari was probably on her way back home, so I decided to wait for her on one of the benches near the entrance. I did not want to be intrusive and enter her property thinking I owned the place.

The clear night sky looked mysterious, eerie, calm, tranquil, but most of all entrancing. You can't help but look at them and wonder what was up there or if you have a meaning in the world at all. It felt amazing to sit down and relax your muscles, gazing up at the sky.

I realized the black fancy car did not budge from where it was parked and I looked to see Gaara walking in my direction. He took a seat beside me and also looked up at the night sky, lost in the trance of the glistening stars of the dark abyss.

He decided to wait with me.

His scent was discreet and somehow pleasant, not too striking or too overwhelming, nor was it too difficult to stand. It was very soothing and once his scent perfused my nostrils, I instantly felt my knees become weak which was an odd feeling. It was a very comfortable scent, something more mysterious, like a mixture of smells where you can't quite put your finger on it.

I hid any sign of emotion from him, not wanting to show how much of an effect the guy was having on me. I did not know why, I thought he was strange and definitely did not find him attractive.

Without turning, I glanced at him from the corner of my eye and noticed the structure of his face. Although his chin was small, his jaw line was perfect, not too much nor less. His lips look soft and pale, as if it needed a source of life implanted on it, and his eyes…those eyes. His face was framed by crimson, messy locks that I wondered how could he even keep it so messy yet look so neat. I found it oddly alluring. His face may not reveal a thing, but his eyes sure did. Behind those green mint eyes were many secrets only he knew himself.

"I told you to brace yourself," he finally said.

"You knew all this time, yet you didn't even bother to tell me,"

"I tried looking for you and when I did you would freeze then run like a frightened deer," responded the red-head expressionless.

He closed his eyes for some time until he decided to look up at the dark abyss again before he continued, "He was hurt for so many years."

I looked down to the floor, trying so hard not to cry in front of this stranger.

"Even with that empty hole in his heart, he always managed to wear a smile, never stopped believing you would return one day."

I barely conversed with the man the entire night and already he was making me feel awful. I clenched my fists, my nails digging deep into the skin of my palm.

"Since the day we met he would always talk about you…I couldn't help but despise you...for causing him such unnecessary pain."

My heart sank and I gulped real hard as I tried to contain myself from crying. I felt…ashamed. I knew I should not have left without saying goodbye that day but it couldn't be helped, "I know… I thought about him and the others every single day. I thought I would never see them again since it has been so long. Even so, I knew I would come back. I could never forget about Naruto, he's very special to me."

He remained silent and continued looking up at the sky. A streak of light in the sky moved rapidly across and faded in a second. It was a shooting star. I have seen many in Iwagakure since the mansion was in a more secluded area in the forests. For each shooting star, I had a wish ready. One of the wishes was to return to Konoha and that wish came true. Another was to be able to be with my friends again, that came true. The last wish I could remember making back at the mansion was to be able to escape that hellhole. Thanks to Itachi, it was possible.

But this time, though, I did not know what to wish for. I have everything at the moment: safety, shelter, my friends, warmth.

"Temari sure likes Shikamaru, huh," I looked over at the approaching couple. They stopped a couple of feet away from the building's entrance and were saying their goodbyes.

Gaara turned his attention to his sister and her lover, "I never see her like this. But if he makes her happy, then I can feel relieved he will be able to take care of my sister."

"Wow, I did not take you as the caring type of guy. You're full of surprises yourself," I said giggling softly.

"You've seen nothing yet."

"Oh really. What else do you have in store Mr. Big Shot?"

The redhead glanced at me without moving an inch and smiled slightly.

* * *

><p>Gaara watched her enter the building following his sister. Sakura glanced back and waved once more before disappearing inside.<p>

The red-head sat behind the wheel, losing himself in the remembrance of her scent and her appearance…the similarities between her and Narutp. Both are loud, impulsive, stubborn...yet seem to radiate the atmosphere. When a song that caught her liking was being played back at that horrendous hole of a ruckus, she had quickly picked herself up from bawling and rushed to the dance floor with the blonde loudmouth and the timid one.

As Naruto and the others conversed earlier that day, Gaara's eyes seemed to have a mind of its own and would stare at the lost-girl for a good time. Naruto had noticed and began teasing the red-head about it. He simply told him he was staring at the exit, longing to just escape the place. But Naruto wouldn't buy it.

Sakura Haruno…there wasn't much to look at. That annoying pink hair of hers made her seem childish but the look in her eyes canceled that aspect out, making her appear mature. There was something that really caught his liking of the little spit-fire.

_What the hell am I thinking? _Gaara thought to himself. He didn't have time to gawk at girls who decided to leave town without notifying her friends, like some teenage boy acting on his hormones.

He shook his head and sped off into the night.

* * *

><p><strong><em>Meeeeeh I didn't really like the way this chapter turned out.I tried to not make it<em>**

**_so long. I promise the next one will be much more organized and right on point!_**

**_Until next time!_**

**_Thanks so much for your time! (and sorry for the wait!)_**


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